Baldwin wins eighth straight county crown

Baldwin junior Katelyn Simpson not only had the toughest defensive assignment in Saturday’s Nassau Class AA girls’ basketball championship game — she also made the biggest offensive play on a day when points came at a premium.

Simpson made a quick move from the top of the key and converted a driving layup with 1:06 remaining to put the top-seeded Bruins ahead for good in a hard-fought 31-29 victory over No. 2 Syosset at Hofstra’s Mack Sports Complex.

“We put in a lot of work to get here and it’s really exciting,” said Simpson, who guarded Yale-bound Lilah Grubman for most of the afternoon and held Syosset’s star to five points. “We knew it was going to be a tough game,” she added. “We’ve been practicing three hours every day and watched a lot of film. We were ready and I’m so happy we seized the moment.”

Simpson’s layup gave Baldwin a 29-28 lead in a roller coaster fourth quarter that featured four lead changes. Freshman Payton Dulin and senior Dallysshya Moreno each made a free throw in the final 22 seconds to stretch the advantage to 31-28. The Braves had the final possession of regulation and a chance to force overtime when they drew a foul on a three-point attempt with 0.1 second left. However, a miss on the first foul shot ultimately sealed the Bruins’ eighth consecutive county title.

“We’ve got a pretty young group and I’m just so proud of them,” Baldwin head coach Tom Catapano said. “It was quite a battle. Obviously, it wasn’t high scoring, but it was tight the whole way and that’s a really good team we found a way to beat.”

Dulin was the game’s lone double-digit scorer with 10 points. Moreno added seven, Simpson six, and senior Paris Nosworthy and sophomore Renelle Grannum chipped in four apiece.   

Baldwin (16-4), which outscored Syosset 14-4 from the foul line, advances to face Longwood (21-1) in the Long Island Class AA championship/Southeast Regional Final at Eastport-South Manor High School next Saturday at 1:30 p.m.

The Bruins and Lions were slated to meet March 14, 2020 in the LIC before the Covid-19 forced the cancellation of the remainder of the season. There were also no playoffs last winter due to the pandemic.

“It’s kind of fitting it’s us and Longwood two years later,” Catapano said. “We have a tremendous amount of respect for that program. I’ve seen them twice live this season and we’re going to have another battle on our hands.”

Baldwin averaged 60 points over 19 previous games leading up to Saturday’s county final with a season low of 46 but was unable to generate any offensive momentum. Syosset led 9-6 midway through the second quarter as both teams struggled to get shots to drop.

“There are always days when shots aren’t going to fall and we saw that today with both teams,” Catapano said. “For us, it’s always defense first. We didn’t get many baskets off transition, but we got to the line and made foul shots.”

The Bruins led 5-4 after the opening quarter, 14-11 at halftime, and 20-17 after three quarters. Dulin hit a clutch three-pointer early in the fourth for a 23-19 lead before Syosset clawed back.

“Payton is a special talent,” Catapano said of Dulin, who scored seven straight points for the Bruins spanning the third and fourth quarters. “We run sets through her and she has all the tools,” he added. “She has a chance to become one of the best to ever play at Baldwin.”  

Please check back for updates on this developing story.